The Ruby

This is my first visit to The Ruby and I will definitely be back to try the chicken and waffles. Today I had the Power Hour chicken salad and it is huge. The chicken breast is so tender and delicious. Adult beverages are only allowed in one part of the restaurant so if you plan on having one, let them know.

Went for Father’s Day breakfast. Wait was long to get in but the food was good and the staff terrific.
Restrooms are located downstairs and from the top of the stairs to the restrooms things were not very clean. Carpets needed to be vacuumed, floors washed and walls wiped. There wasn’t any paper toweling in the dispenser for hand-​washing.
Food was good but cleanliness of restroom and surrounding areas left me wondering what shape the kitchen is in.

Good food with a focus on rotisserie chicken which can be a little dry at times. The music is good played off a small vinyl collection. Be prepared to wait in line of your going for breakfast. The plus side is that they have a comfortable waiting area and a supply of coffee for those in the queue.

Full bar, retro ambience, and an inventive menu are definitely positives. I’ve been here twice– once for breakfast, once for dinner– and I think the food quality is uneven. Maybe this what I should expect of breakfast sausage here, but mine was kind of mealy. It was not undercooked but I’m wondering if a few more minutes on the griddle would have helped. My wife’s granola was made with steel cut oats which sounds great but they were very chewy. I liked a mouthful of it but a whole bowl would definitely have worn my jaws out. At dinner I hoovered up my excellent vegetables (sautéed kale, celery parmesan slaw, green beans) and most of my half chicken but the wing drumette was raw inside and the waitress tried to convince me that it really was cooked, it was just the brining process that made it look that way! Someone please tell me if this is true… I was unimpressed with that explanation. My wife’s chicken Caesar salad had big chunks of romaine that were too large to fit in your mouth without cutting up and the chicken was just a couple of big wads that she also had to cut up. Again, if this is just local custom or the restaurant’s idiosyncratic approach, well, okay but it felt more like careless food prep to me.

We stopped in on our honeymoon based on a Unilocal review and were blown away by the friendly service. The owner took the time to sit down and talk to us, giving us dining recommendations. We had the Chicken Poutine and the Duck Confit and Waffles as he recommended and both meals were absolutely incredible! The Ruby is A MUST GO!

The Ruby just couldn’t be better. Went for dinner the second time — all three of us have never been disappointed with our food. I’ve ordered the duck both times, first the duck confit (fantastic and so were the sides) but this time I got the duck confit poutine with a small salad on the side. Simply delicious. I’m a gravy snob, but this is the real thing, not from a mix. Service is excellent, too. We all love this place; this is my new favourite restaurant in Victoria.
Update: Had breakfast at The Ruby for the first time. I don’t usually get breakfast hash anywhere; I’ve found it’s usually 80% potato chunks and those just aren’t my favourite. BUT the hash at The Ruby was incredible! I seriously want to drive down there right now and get another one! The potatoes are not those huge chunks most restaurants serve, they are shredded and crispy on the outside, and the duck and bacon and everything on it was just right. I ordered the hollandaise sauce on the side but it was not necessary at all. (I thought I might have to use it to eat some potatoes.) I finished off the whole plate which is very rare thing for me to do. OMG so good.

Quite impressive! Don’t let the motel next door fool you. Half order of chicken can easily feed two. Impressively tender and juicy. Kale salad can use some dressing massage. Although healthiest thing I’ve had while vacationing.

What could have been a bad experience reaffirmed my love for the Ruby.
I’ve been coming here since they opened. It has the feel of a hip downtown Victoria breakfast joint without the crazy lines — at first. No great breakfast place in Victoria can stay a secret for long and the Ruby is no exception; they’ve been getting busier and busier!
Today there was quite the lineup, so the host let us know it would be about half an hour and we could definitely head out for a bit. We went to Starbucks for a coffee, returned in 20 minutes… and apparently they had already called our name twice. Instead of pushing us to the end of the list, the host apologized and seated us promptly.
The food was amazing as always. The Ruby has a great mix of decadent comfort food and healthy options, and everything I’ve ordered has been incredible. Sometimes it is a bit of a wait for food, but you are always taken care of with coffee and drinks during that time. Tip: as long as you don’t show up starving, you’ll be happy.
I’m excited for their second restaurant, Brisket, to open!

Ping pong while you wait for your table, tacos for breakfast and good service! I will most definitely be back for sure. I would even say Jam has some competition now specially since you can play ping pong while you wait!

This place is eclectic, with old school type writers and record players for your amusement as you wait to be seated. The food was great, good portions for the value that you’re getting. The server we had was very nice and accommodating. We waited about 10 – 15 minutes to be seated during a holiday so I thought that was a great. Overall great experience! Would definitely come again.

Visiting family in Victoria and went to The Ruby for Brunch.
Knowledgeable, friendly and efficient server, interesting and eclectic menu, and fabulous food at modest prices.
What’s more to say! Gem of a find — and the chef took time to come to our table and greet us before the meal an inquire about it after! Good job!

food was ok…
They need a better waitress!
Someone who is friendly to everyone would be appreciated.
It’s disheartening to sit & watch her be friendly to others & be a total bitch to you.

My wife and I stayed at the Hotel Zed and were so happy we found the Ruby! It’s located right on Douglas (main road) easy to find, and quickly became our go to breakfast stop for four days in a row. Since we ate there so much, we got to know the owner who took great care of us each time. Each day we ate around 10am and it was packed each day. While I thought it was due to the hotel patrons eating here, not so as apparently this is the new go to stop for breaky in Victoria and really popular with the locals.
I had the granola each day (they used steel cut oats which I had never had and they were fantastic) and as a result I’ll now be buying this style of oatmeal as the way they prepared it was just delicious.
I also had the mexi-​benny which was a combo of oven roasted chicken (i know, it doesn’t sound good but it really was fantastic), homemade salsa and of course eggs over a toasted croissant. Coming from Vancouver where we have alot of great breakfast spots, this was hands down one of the tastiest meals I’ve had in a long time.
Prices are reasonable, only regret was that we didn’t go there for dinner as we had other plans each night, but the dinner menu also looked tasty.
Highly recommended.

I stopped in on a Thursday morning and had the Manny Tacquiao (sp?) breakfast tacos.
Corn tortillas covered with scrambled eggs, pico de gallo, and a mix of various veg and sauce. They also came with a portion of fried potato. They were quite delicious and a fairly generous proportion.
The coffee was also very good (Discovery Coffee blend I believe).
Service was also prompt and courteous.
About the only negative is that corn torillas can be a bit tough to cut with a regular table knife, and I didn’t think to ask for a steak knife until almost done — I was too busy eating and enjoying the food!

Ok so I felt a quick moment of selfishness this morning. Should I NOT write a review and keep this amazing l’il (not so secret anymore) gem of a place to ourselves??? Or write a positive review so that others may come and experience this culinary pleasure as well? The waffles I had this morning were the BEST I’ve ever had in my life! Light and crunchy (lots of butter, yum!) and the strawberry confit and maple syrup were all homemade! Whipping cream on the side was freshly whipped and not from a can. My husband’ skinny breakfast eggs were scrumptious and just perfect. (quote unquote). We’ll be back! Service was quick and friendly. No problems there…

You got to like being served by the owners! Very good eggs and bacon, and the hash browns are very very good. Kathi had the waffles with bananas with sauce. Waffles were light and crunchy and the sauce was the best. I highly recommend The Ruby, and will return when in Victoria.

I’m not sure if all the food is like this, since I’ve only been here once (so far), but this Benny was one of the best I’ve ever had. Simple, clean presentation, and packed with both zesty and rich flavour. Eggs were also perfectly cooked, poached medium with just the right combination of runny and solid. My wife’s quinoa oatmeal was also a pleasant surprise (not my thing to order, but I at least wanted another bite after we did the usual «ooh, try this» swap). Keep up the good work, guys. We’ll be back.

Happy hour is the bomb. Went for the sampler and ordered one of most things on the menu. Caesar, beer, meatball, Turkey wing, salad, chicken taco. All awesome.

I came here for lunch while waiting for my car to be fixed. I had past it a few times and the resturant as well as hotel had cought my eye.
I read the reviews and they looked steller. However one review was not, and that’s okay. Not everyone has a good experience or maybe they didn’t like the food. No matter. HOWEVER the response from a Ruby employee on the comment was shocking. Filled with attitude and sass. I was very tempted to avoid resturant due to the poor attitude of this employee.
I went anyway and got amazing service, humorous and kind. I had the Chicken taco salad and it was marvelous! Loads of flavor, light (didn’t feel sick after due to heavy meats and sauce like other resturants) and the portion was ideal. Could have used a little more chicken however.
I also tried thier fries with roasted garlic aoli because I love me some fries and Aoli. The fries where fries, a little tough, they looked like they should be soft and crispy but sadly they where not. Still yummy. The aoli was not as flavourful as I had hoped, needed more spice and bigger serving or less fries. Overall still good.
My last move was to order the doughnuts. They where so good. Slightly crispy on the outside but soft and warm on the inside. They make them fresh for you and come with a chocolate dipping sauce.
Overall I had a great time and there was good food and friendly staff. Will return and I think everyone shoukd give this place a try.

Just open this week so decided to try it. ordered a duck confit benny. the benny was perfectly cooked with a nice truffle hollandaise sauce. The hashbrown was a potato and sweet potato combo.
I was impressed enough i had couple friends drop by for happy hour. they enjoyed couple deep fried wings, chicken poutine and a ratatouille.
I’ll probably go back for another breakfast soon.